Budda Baker officially replacing Tyrann Mathieu in slot

The Arizona Cardinals defense is beginning to take shape as the offseason progresses. After questions about the defensive backfield because of free agency, things are clearing up about who will play what roles.

After Tramon Williams left in free agency, it appears cornerback Jamar Taylor, whom the Cardinals recently acquired via trade, will have the inside track to start at cornerback. And while he is known more being effective in the slot, he will not replace Tyrann Mathieu as the team’s nickel corner.

That role will belong to safety Budda Baker.

“When you look at Budda and the positions we are asking him to play, I go back to college and he was playing the slot,” defensive backs coach David Merritt said, via the official team site’s Darren Urban. “He was very successful and he shot down a lot of planes, is what I like to say. We have him again playing in the slot, like what Honey Badger did for them.”

Baker, who had great success on defense once he was placed in the lineup to replace Tyvon Branch after he tore his ACL against the Seattle Seahawks, did not play in the slot a year ago. He played in the box.

When Arizona drafted him in the second round of the NFL in 2017, he was often compared to Mathieu and viewed as a potential replacement for him. He is bigger, stronger, faster and more durable.